Ledges Golf Club manager says July lightning strike won't deter effort for South Hadley course to break even

Ledges Golf Club on 18 Mulligan Drive at sunset September 6 2013Jim Russell

SOUTH HADLEY – A damaging lightning strike which occurred at the height of the playing season at Ledges Golf Club and caused $30,000 in damage has not deterred the municipal course from its goal of breaking even this year.

Officials are hoping insurance covers the expenses related to the repairs.

The lightning strike destroyed the wiring system for an irrigation pump that carries the water from the Connecticut River to irrigate the greens and fairways of the 18-hole course.

According to Juhasz, the repairs to the pumping system took 10 days to complete. He said the repairs required employment of a dive team for underwater work. The repairs were time consuming because of dangerous Connecticut River currents and massive amounts of silt build-up.

Despite the setback, the manager said the club is improving revenue, thanks to the quality of food served at the restaurant, a 60 percent reduction in energy costs as the result of increased efficiencies and a high level of bookings for fall events.

“The food and beverages have been a tremendous asset to the town,” Juhasz told the Selectboard. The eatery, now called the Valley View Grille, has received high marks from customers who praise the tasty and fresh food prepared by the new chef, John Piskor, of Northampton.

The club has experienced deficits of as much as $250,000, and Juhasz said his team shaved that back to $97,000 last year.

“The plan is to break even, that’s our goal – the goal for fiscal year 2014 is to break even,” he said.

“The quality of the course has been the number one asset through the years,” selectboard chairman John Hine said. “There was already a sense things were improving rather dramatically. We have a very good operation.”

“The jury is still out,” selectman Frank DeToma said. “I would like to see this trend continue.”

“At this point we have seen a tremendous improvement,” Hine told Juhasz and his board colleagues at the Sept. 3 meeting.